Guard Tre Mann took the basketball and drove into the lane, taking on a defender. He jumped, bent his body in a way that seemingly defied all laws of physics and laid the ball up over the defender’s outstretched arms and into the basket.
Mann is one of Florida’s talented freshmen, and his abilities were on full display in Brooklyn on Tuesday night. He scored a season-high 13 points in the Gators’ 83-51 over Providence in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Invitational. UF’s freshmen combined for 36 points in the win.
Florida’s 83 points was also its highest scoring output of the season.
Whistles dominated the first half, with both teams combining for 27 fouls and 34 free throws. Neither team shot well from the charity stripe in the frame, but that was seemingly the only spot where Providence could score points. Twelve of the Friars’ 22 first-half points were from free throws.
The Gators took over just before the halfway point of the half. Leading 12-10, Florida exploded for a 15-2 run, capped off with a three from freshman Ques Glover.
Defensively, UF frustrated Providence in the first half, as the Friars shot a dismal 18 percent from the field and 0 for 9 from beyond the three-point line. Florida coasted to a 37-22 lead at halftime.
But the persistent whistles on both sides of the court meant that both teams had to go to its bench early and often. Between that and the lopsided score in the second half, nine Gators played at least 10 minutes. Florida’s depth finally stepped up on a night where forward Kerry Blackshear Jr. only had seven points and got into foul trouble.
The Gators carried their strong first-half play into the second half. Florida has lacked consistency for much of the season so far, but UF played a complete 40 minutes on Tuesday. UF pummeled Providence in the second half 46-29, thanks to a 19-4 run to close the game.
Florida continued to suffocate the Friars’ offense, which shot just 26 percent shooting from the field. Guard Luwane Pipkins made his team’s only three in the middle of the second half.
Florida’s much-maligned offense had a breakout game against a Friars defense that was ranked just outside of the top 50 in KenPom’s adjusted defensive efficiency rankings ahead of the game.
The Gators shot 51 percent from the field, including a 16-for-28 performance in the second half. Florida didn’t shoot often from downtown - its 18 attempts were tied for its second-fewest in a game this season. But the Gators made over 44 percent of their three-point shots, its second-highest mark of the season.
Instead, Florida pounded the paint, with 38 points coming from that area.
UF is still undefeated in neutral-site games this season and will have a chance to keep the streak alive on Saturday when it faces Utah State in Sunrise, Florida in the Orange Bowl Classic.
Contact Brendan Farrell at bfarrell@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @Bfarrell727
